Natural Magic
by AAJ Edward
Summary: Spilled salt is to be tossed over the left shoulder. Roses and lavender are for luck. And whenever the ghost owl calls, hold on to the ones you love. Growing up in a witch's world, Jacob Black is about to meet his true love all thanks to a murder.
1. Prologue

**This is a very very very very early x-mas gift to Mit... YUS! since she never specified I might as well do this one for her and we'll see how this story progresses from there...**

There are a few elements based on the book and move "Practical Magic" but most of it will deviate in later chapters.... I hope... any who, this is EdwardXJacob... in case that wasn't obvious. But yeah, it will eventually get there.. soon I hope.. so... read and review? please?

OH! Also! I'm only using a small portion of the Twilight cast due to me not having read the books in what seems like forever... so yeah... sorry! ^-^'''

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing....**

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Natural Magic**

**Prologue**

My mother had a gift. She was what the white people would call a witch. But to my tribe, she was a healer. She was magic. The gift was passed down to all the women of her family... I wound up being the exception. You see, my mother only lived long enough to have a son. And that resulting in me being the first male ever born to my mother's line. I was the odd man out. My mother taught me what she could before she died, dying in my father's stead. My aunts blamed the curse...

There was this curse that had been put in place by great great great grandmother after she had lost her husband. The curse had started as a simple spell to make sure she would never love again. That spell formed into a curse that followed our blood line. For anyone that would love the child descended from the blood line, their lover would come to meet an unfortunate death.

There's a second story that my aunts would always tell me about. The gist of it was that, our great ancestor was the wife of a great wolf. They had two children, twin daughters. And those daughters had a gift, not only of magic and working with the world around them, but the gift to change their shape. They could phase between wolf and human from the time they were sixteen and on. And these daughters went on to have daughters of their own. And their daughters had daughters. And so on... until one of these daughters had a son... and that's how my story... begins...

**Age seven...**

"Eyes the color of green amber..." I whispered, plucking a petal from the lilac before me. "Favorite shape... will be the crescent moon... the voice of the gods... and a smile that can charm almost anyone..." A petal was used for each description, being added to the bowl as I finally stepped out of the small green house and into the yard. They spiraled upward and into the sky, my gaze lifting with them.

"Jacob.. what are you doing?" I blinked and turned to look at my father, the man sitting in the front door as he watched me. Slowly, I lowered the bowl to my side and made my way over.

"A love spell.." I whispered, keeping my head down and gaze down cast.

"I thought you told me you never wanted to fall in love..."

I shrugged. "I don't... so I figure... if I thought up a girl that never exists... I can't..."

My father sighed and pulled me into his lap, holding me close. "Jacob... you know your mother wouldn't want that..."

"But... I don't want to be heartbroken... like you..." I whispered. I felt him stiffen before he relaxed a little.

"Let's get you into bed, Jacob..."

**17 years later... present...**

A laugh escaped me as an arm circled around my waist, pulling me into a familiar chest. A deeper chuckle sounded in my ear, a pair of slightly chapped lips pressing to my neck in a loving kiss. I hummed softly and slowly turned around to face the other.

"Found you..." he whispered, lips hovering over mine in a cocky smirk.

"That you did... now what are you going to do about it?" I asked, gaze lifting from his lips to meet brown eyes. His smirk grew.

"This.." and with that, his lips were on mine. I groaned slightly, tilting my head back to angle the kiss and deepen it. He pulled back after a moment, giving me one last peck on the lips. "I really should be leaving here soon.." he muttered, taking a small step back.

I rolled my eyes and nudged him towards the door, a smile in place. "Oh go to work... what time will you be home?"

"Around supper. Like always. Think you can survive until then?" he asked, chuckling as I nudged him again.

"Of course. What do I look like? A pansy? Go. I've got things under control here." I replied, stealing a last kiss before he stepped out the door.

"Love you, Jake..."

"Love you too, Seth..."

He smiled and left, the door shutting soundly behind him. Only after he was gone did I start to hear the owl call in the still dark morning hours. I glanced out the window, the sun barely peaking up over the horizon. I ignored it, my gaze drifting off to the tree where I could see the raptor... white feathers glistening and giving it a near ghost like appearance. For a second, it looked as if it were staring right back at me. A shiver ran down my spine and I snapped the blinds shut along with the window. I couldn't... it wasn't possible...

The phone rang sometime around nine, one of my closest friends calling me as per usual. She was in Arizona at present and was, yet again, in a new relationship. I chuckled as I heard her laughter.

"I swear, you go through men faster than some of the women in Vegas..." I replied to a comment she made. She shrieked in laughter, snorting once before she managed to cover her mouth and stifle the sound.

"_So says the man that's never left La Push._.."

"Hey, I've been to Forks and a few of the cities surrounding it." I defended, sounding miffed. She scoffed.

"_So adventurous Jake! Really! You're so daring! But seriously! I can't wait to come visit you so I can tell you all about my newest! Oh! I think he's the one!_"

I chuckled, looking towards the door as there was a knock. "Hold on a second, Bells, gotta answer the door. Can I call ya back?"

"_Of course!_" she replied. I muttered another quick apology before hanging up and making my way to the door. What greeted me was Sam, one of our closest friends. I smiled in greeting, the expression faultering when he lifted a grim gaze to mine.

"Sam?" I asked, eyes scanning his face. Something was wrong. And then it dawned on me. He should have been at work. Fear started to grip me and I took a step forward. "What's wrong? Is Emily alright?! Sam?!"

He set his hands on my shoulders, holding me in place. "Jake.." he croaked out. "You might want to sit down..."

"No! What's wrong!? Is it my dad!? Wh- What's going on!?"

Sam winced slightly before looking at the ground and lifting his gaze back to mine. "Jake... Seth's dead..."

I looked into his eyes and my blood ran cold. "Wh-what?" I croaked. He swallowed and nodded. "No! You're... you're lying! Sam! Please tell me you're lying!" He shook his head.

"I'm so sorry, Jake... It was an accident... the car didn't stop and..."

Outside, I could hear car doors and I bolted past Sam and out the door. This had to be a cruel joke. He just couldn't... I ran, straight into the arms of Embry, the taller holding me still as I struggled against his hold. "NO! GOD DAMN IT! LET ME GO! HE'S NOT!... He's not.... He's... not..." We sank to the ground, the gravel digging into my knees as I clung to Embry, sobbing.

The curse, it seemed... didn't apply to just the women of my mother's blood line....


	2. 1: The Owl

well, second chapter's up! WOOT! oooo gettin' into the plot maybe? Am I seeing hints of it!?! REALLY!?! OMG! THE SUSPENSE!!!! IT'S KILLING ME!!!!!! ........................... ahem... anyway.... yeah.... read and review?

**Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING!!!!**

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Natural Magic**

**1: The Owl**

In many cultures... the owl is a sign of omen or bad luck. Often times, death or sickness accompany it. They are associated with the truth and the ability to see through lies. Either way, they don't usually bring about anything good to the person that hears their call... I learned that first hand.

"Jacob..." there was a knock at the door. I ignored it, just remaining on my bed as my gaze drifted out past my window. "Jacob?" another knock. I still didn't move. On the other side of the door, I could hear my father sigh. "Jake... you need to get up..."

I continued to ignore him, gaze dead and unfocused on the world outside... the world that kept going on. A click of the door and soon it was open, my father wheeling his way into the room. I didn't twitch. Honestly, I should have been a little kinder and made an effort... seeing as my dad let me move back in after Seth... oh hell, I couldn't even think it...

"Jacob Black." I looked up at that one. He frowned at me, pulling his wheel chair up to the bed and stopped so he could smack me over the head. "Stop moping. Get your ass up. Get showered, changed, and downstairs. You've been laying up here for three weeks and you've barely eaten anything!" He started to head back to the door and into the hall where his ramp was. "And if you aren't down here and cleaned up in a half an hour I'm dragging your ass down the stairs!" and with that, he was gone.

I let my gaze follow him before I huffed and got up. Might as well go get something to eat... I dug around in my dresser before pulling out a pair of ratty jeans and a regular t-shirt. That done, I made my way into the upstairs bathroom and started the shower. With my hearing as good as it was, I could hear my dad downstairs in the kitchen. He was talking to someone...

I eventually trudged my way down the stairs, gaze drifting towards the table where my father had rolled his wheel chair up to, another figure sitting across from him. Charlie...

The man lifted his gaze to me and offered a small smile, getting and meeting me at the base of the steps. "Hey, Jacob..." he stated, pulling me into a hug. "It's good to see you up and moving at least..." he added softly before releasing me. I just lifted my gaze to meet his. He hesitated before continuing. "Bella's... flying in next week... it was the earliest flight she could get..."

I just nodded and side stepped. My father gave me a pointed look before looking to the counter, food ready to be dished up and an extra plate waiting. I sighed and made my way over, biting back the urge to gag at the smell of food. It just wasn't appealing... I sighed and dished up a small plate. My father cleared his throat and I paused, jaw clenching as I fought back the urge to retort. I settled for a quick glare and dished up a full plate.

While I sat at the table, Charlie and my father talked back and forth. Meanwhile, I picked at my food, eating only when my father shot me a look. He talk was simple, mainly discussing local news as well as Bella's latest address. Under different circumstances I would have been chattering right along with them, but... at the moment, I was too busy forcing food down my throat. I finished the plate and got up, placing it in the sink before making my way upstairs. I heard my father call after me, but I ignored it, calmly walking towards the bathroom only to empty my stomach into the toilet.

My arms shook as I held myself up on my knees, forehead resting against the cool porcelain. My body was weak, hungry, and at the same time I just couldn't keep anything down. Soft foot falls alerted me to some one other than my father entering the room. A soft sigh and a hand on my shoulder. My heart skipped a beat and for a second I almost believed it was Seth. But reality sunk in and Charlie's scent reached my nose.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The rest of that week was spent like the others had been... me moping. The only difference was the room I was in. I was at least moving around the house... it was an improvement... a small one, but still... a step forward.

Seth came to me in a dream that night... something that had been happening more and more often the longer I was without him. He was frowning, looking towards me, but never at me... almost like he was watching something beyond me. Every time I tried to turn around, I was stopped. I woke up, the dream ending or shifting into something new... something terrifying. If there was one thing that my mother made sure I knew, it was omens in dreams.

Howling... it was all I could hear when I slept. Like that of a wolf. It's said that to hear a howl in your dreams it signifies loneliness... solitude... pain... anguish... I guess they nailed it on the head. I did, however, manage to turn around once. That only found me stumbling around in the darkness. Yet again, another bad sign. I was lost, depressed... hopeless...

I snapped back into reality as a light, almost barely there touch ghosted down the bridge of my nose. My eyes snapped open, brown coming face to face with the familiar irises of Bella Swan. She grinned.

"Hey hey... good to see you awake..." she stated softly. I blinked a few times before a small smile formed.

"Hell's Bells..." I muttered. She squealed and wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me close.

An hour later and the two of us were sprawled out in my room, trying in vain to keep our laughter down to a whisper. It was odd, talking to Bella, I felt almost human again. It was a good feeling, knowing that not all the good in the world was gone. Hell, it even made me miss my old life...

"So... tell me about this guy of yours..." I finally stated, shifting slightly to lie on my stomach, elbows resting on at the foot of my bed. Bella was sprawled on the floor, grinning from ear to ear as she wrapped the spare blanket around her a little more.

"Oh! He's amazing! Muscular, handsome, and oh so good in bed." she purred, fingers idly playing with the cat's eye necklace around her neck. One of the things Bella and I had in common was magic. Her mother was a form a long line of witches, passing the gift on to her daughter when she was born. It's how we met and it was what sealed our friendship. When my mother died, I learned from Bella's mother... all the way up until the divorce. That was when she and her mother moved away, Bella only returning in her junior year of high school.

I chuckled and shook my head, relaxing a little more. "Why do you always go for the same kind?" I asked, smirking. "Anyway, what's his name?"

"Emmett... Emmett Cullen..." the name rolled off her tongue, being caressed as if she were handling the world's softest silk. "And he's got a brother I think you might like to meet..."

I sighed and shook my head. "I think I'm good for a while..." I replied. She snorted.

"Come on, at least meet them when they come up?"

I blinked. "What?"

"Oh, Charlie didn't tell you? I'm heading back to Arizona at the end of the week. But I'll be back in three months. I'm bringing them with me. Emmett and his family. They're moving to Forks then... and I'm joining them." She giggled, going back to her usual bubbly self when we were together. She grabbed her purse and dug around in it a moment before withdrawing a photo, handing it to me. "Emmett's the one to the left, standing next to the blond. And that..." she pointed to a man with almost golden colored hair due to the sunlight bouncing off it. "That, is Edward... his brother I mentioned..."

The man's eyes... were the color of green amber...


	3. Author Side Note

Alright, guys, so here's what's going on:

At the moment, I am having some family issues going on. My mom's currently getting engaged and my family's expanding, but it's a long road until things are settled. So I haven't had a lot of time to really think of what I'm going to be doing next or long enough to string more than a few sentences together.

Also, it's almost the end of the school year and as a senior, things are hectic. My school work comes first and I just want to survive these last 20 some days so I can get my diploma and get ready for college.

I will be updating as soon as I can. No promises on dates though. I'm sorry for those of you that have been waiting a long time for a story update, but notes on my stories are on the back burner for a while.

I'm glad you want me to update, however, I do not need threats of bodily harm in my reviews. It will not make me update faster. I am sorry, but please, try to be mature about this. Just put it on Story Alert and I promise I will update as soon as I can.

-AAJEdward


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